Tour Spain
Portugal & Morocco (Budget Class)
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Starts in Madrid
Ends in Madrid |
USA departure
Saturdays
From January 13
To December 22
2007
From January 12
To March 8
2008
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15 days
16 days incl. air
c6830 |
Tour price land only- - - - -
from $ 1290 to $ 1480
Airline tickets from your home city also available
Your Travel Package Includes:
SIGHTSEEING:
Visits to Avila, Salamanca, Coimbra, Batalha, Fatima, Portuguese wine Bodega, Seville, Casablanca
SCENIC HIGHLIGHTS:
Serra da Estrela, Andalusia, Guadalquivir Valley, Costa del Sol, La
Mancha, Middle Atlas
Inside visits are shown in UPPERCASE in the tour description, including admission charges when applicable
GUIDES:
Local Guides for city sightseeing in Madrid, Lisbon, Fez, Marrakesh, Rabat, Granada-Alhambra Palace*. Services of a professional Tour Director while touring
*entrance fees included
TRANSPORTATION:
Scheduled transatlantic flights and airport transfers in London if
Tour Operator issues the tickets. Touring by private first-class air-conditioned
motorcoach. Ferry across the Straits of Gibraltar.
MEALS:
14 buffet breakfasts (B); 7 dinners (D)
AIRPORT TRANSFERS:
Airport transfers may be included when you make your flight
arrangements with Tour Operator.
OPTIONALS:
Choice of optional excursions at reasonable prices to customize your
own experience. Please find a detailed list in your travel documents
Itinerary - Spain, Portugal & Morocco
Day 1 Sat. BOARD YOUR OVERNIGHT TRANSATLANTIC FLIGHT.
Day 2 Sun. ARRIVAL IN MADRID, SPAIN. Check into your hotel. The rest of the day is free to start exploring lively Madrid. Tonight, meet your Tour Director and fellow travelers. (D)
Day 3 Mon. MADRID. Of the Spanish capital, situated 2,180 feet above sea level, the Spaniards say it’s the nearest thing to heaven. You’ve only a day here and it’s certainly worth making the most of it by joining the included guided sightseeing tour: a full panoramic drive by way of the Avenida Mayor, Puerta del Sol, Parliament Square, and a picture stop outside the Royal Palace. The optional trip to Toledo is most rewarding, too. The splendid setting of this old walled city above the Tagus was made famous in El Greco’s painting, and even now it’s like a great open-air museum of Spanish history and art. (B)
Day 4 Tue. MADRID-AVILA-COIMBRA, PORTUGAL. West for a visit to fortified Avila with its many towers. Next is Salamanca, just six miles from the spot where Wellington routed Napoleon’s Army in 1812. Make sure you spend some time wandering around Plaza Mayor, the grandest square in Spain. Across the frontier to
Guarda, the highest town in Portugal. From here descend to the valleys of the Serra da Estrela to Coimbra for overnight.
(B,D)
Day 5 Wed. COIMBRA-FATIMA-LISBON. This morning enjoy your orientation tour of
Coimbra, celebrated for its beauty and ancient university. Later travel southwards to Batalha with a visit to its beautifully sited monastery. Today’s penultimate highlight is a visit to the Sanctuary of
Fatima. A sterner and more desolate landscape accompanies you to Lisbon for your overnight in Portugal’s capital. A stop en route includes a wine bodega and some wine tasting. (B)
Day 6 Thu. LISBON. Henry the Navigator made Lisbon the 15th-century mistress of the seas. On the included tour see his monument, the Belem Tower, the Moorish Citadel, and the impressive Black Horse Square. Spend the afternoon in the Alfama’s tile-decorated streets, or take an optional excursion to coastal Estoril and
Cascais. (B)
Day 7 Fri. LISBON-SEVILLE, SPAIN. From the rolling plains of the Alentejo with its woodlands of cork and eucalyptus trees, southwards all the way to the blinding light of Andalusia. Admire its neat white-painted villages and sun-drenched plantations of olives, figs, and almonds, while traveling by way of Beja into magnificent Seville.
(B,D)
Day 8 Sat. SEVILLE. At leisure in one of Spain’s most colorful cities. Perhaps you’d like to spend this morning enjoying an optional sightseeing tour including the main highlights of the vibrant city. (B)
Day 9 Sun. SEVILLE-FERRY TO MOROCCO-FEZ. An interesting drive today which starts with views of the sherry wine region before reaching the coast for embarkation on the ferry to Morocco. Next, motor south along what was once North Africa’s infamous Barbary coast. Join the new motorway for the drive southwards, then west bypassing Meknes for overnight in Fez.
(B,D)
Day 10 Mon. FEZ. At leisure in ancient Fez, which occupies a position of outstanding scenic beauty and is blessed with an ample supply of water. This morning visit the Medina on the included sightseeing tour and watch the crowds of Berbers in their flowing robes as they buy and sell their goods, accompanied by veiled women. Take advantage of an optional excursion for sightseeing in
Meknes. (B)
Day 11 Tue. FEZ-MIDDLE ATLAS-MARRAKESH. Enjoy glimpses of North African village life reminiscent of Beau Geste while motoring through the Middle Atlas on your way to
Marrakesh. (B,D)
Day 12 Wed. MARRAKESH. The highlight of this morning is the included city sightseeing. You’ll really feel as if you’ve stopped the march of time. Marrakesh has always been a meeting place, first just a group of nomad tents, now a bustling city. An optional evening excursion will be a fitting choice to end the day. (B)
Day 13 Thu. MARRAKESH-CASABLANCA-RABAT. This morning drive northwest from the heartland of Morocco by way of
Settat, to reach the most western of all Moroccan cities Casablanca. Stop here awhile. Later in the afternoon continue by way of the motorway northwards to Rabat, Morocco’s capital for city sightseeing and overnight.
(B,D)
Day 14 Fri. RABAT-FERRY CROSSING TO SPAIN-GRANADA. Today an early departure retraces your steps northwards for the ferry across the Straits of Gibraltar to mainland Spain, and drive directly in the heart of Andalucia to reach Granada for overnight.
(B,D)
Day 15 Sat. GRANADA-MADRID. Take advantage of the included visit with a Local Guide of the Alhambra Palace, a summer palace built by the Moorish kings. You’ll treasure the memory of its architectural beauty, dazzling ceilings, and magnificent gardens. This afternoon drive into the very heart of La
Mancha, famed for its castle and windmills. Overnight in Madrid. (B)
Day 16 Sun. YOUR HOMEBOUND FLIGHT ARRIVES THE SAME DAY. (B)
Quality Hotels:
Rooms with private bath or shower, hotel taxes, porterage, tips, and service charges
MADRID Praga (ST) or Abba (F), COIMBRA Dom Luis (ST), LISBON Roma (ST), SEVILLE Don Paco (ST), FEZ Menzeh (ST), MARRAKESH El Andalous (F), RABAT Mercure (ST), GRANADA Don Juan (ST)
Hotel Rating Abbreviations:
F = First Class
ST = Superior Tourist Class
T = Tourist Class
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